1. Statement of the Technical Field
The inventive arrangements relate to RF systems and more particularly to systems in which multiple transmitters and receivers are located in close physical proximity.
2. Description of the Related Art
When there are multiple RF transmitters and receivers located at the same physical location, there is a significant potential for a transmitter to interfere with a receiver at that location. Such interference is usually caused by strong signals from the transmitter having an adverse affect on the operation of sensitive receiver circuitry. The interference can arise regardless of whether the receiver and transmitter are designed to operate on the same band or a different band. In some instances the occurrence of such interference can be obvious whereas in other instances the effects of the interference can be more subtle. For example, intermodulation products created in certain non-linear receiver components (e.g. mixers) can create problems which are difficult to identify.
Identifying and understanding co-site interference can be a complex process which involves every part of the communication systems involved. For example, the analysis process can require analyzing the transmitter signal, modeling the performance of receive and transmit antennas, receiver front end and characteristics, and RF mixers. All such factors must be considered and any modeling inaccuracies can result in a failure to identify potential interference issues. This creates a co-site frequency interference problem which, for many users, can be difficult to identify, avoid and solve. Consider that a user in such a scenario must not merely analyze the problem to identify potential interference issues, but must also then determine what action is appropriate to alleviate the problems. The expertise and equipment required to accomplish the foregoing is frequently beyond the capabilities of many users.